Page 30 of Playing for Possession
Why not? It was nice. This was supposed to be a holiday. “Sure.”
We grabbed our plates and went outside. The fading sun drenched the moss-crusted cobblestones in golden light. The main house was less than a mile away, but the surrounding gardensand rolling fields made it feel like we were alone in the middle of nowhere.
I took a seat at the small rickety wooden table underneath the tangled olive trees, and Joanie sat opposite. Gentle munching from the cows in the neighboring field drifted to my ears. How could any place be so peaceful you could hear cows eating? A funny thought came into my head unbidden.This is romantic.Almost a date, which was daft. If I was trying to impress a woman, I would have done better than pasta. Better than sweatpants and Air Jordans.
Joanie was dressed casually too, in a sweatshirt and shorts, but it only emphasized her natural beauty. She’d caught the sun today. Light freckles bloomed on her cheeks.
She shot me a glance and swept a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks for cooking.”
“It’s just pasta.”
“It looks amazing.”
There was something different about her since our trip to the medical center, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Maybe it was the excitement about meeting Ramirez. It hadn’t exactly taken much persuasion for her to stay. I’d expected more of a challenge.
“Looking forward to meeting Ramirez?”
Her cheeks turned the most delightful shade of pink. “Yes.”
“You like him?”
A faint smile played on her lips. She became engrossed in twisting the pasta on her fork. “I respect him. No one can do what he could in his prime.”
I couldn’t argue with that. Jealousy curdled heavy and twisting in my stomach. The guy was pushing fifty. Although it didn’t slow him down. Joanie would definitely be his type. He liked them young and pretty. He was a great football mentor, but he had a roaming eye, and he didn’t do commitment. Maybe that wasfine for Joanie, but he’d be a recipe for heartache if she wanted something serious.
“You respect him professionally or you want to fuck him?”
Her eyes widened in shock. “You don’t have to use that kind of language.” Her tone hardened. “And I respect him professionally. I’m not into footballers anyway. I know exactly what you’re like with women.”
I could have dropped it, but irritation swirled behind my ribs. What exactly was she accusingallfootballers of?
“What do you mean? What are footballers like with women?”
She lowered her gaze to her food and bit her lip. “Nothing. It doesn’t matter.”
I dropped my fork next to my plate. “No. Go on. I want to know what you think.”
She drew a breath and looked me squarely in the eyes. “You treat women like chewing gum. When they lose their flavor, you spit them out.”
My jaw clenched. Plenty of guys on the team were like that, but not me. Mum would be mortified if I carried on the way some of these guys did.
I licked my lips to quell my frustration. She couldn’t have got me more wrong. “That’s not me at all.”
“If you say so.”
I do bloody say so!I gave an incredulous snort. “You’rea footballer.”
“You know I’m talking about male footballers. You can’t deny it.” Her eyes flashed with an unexpected fire. “I’ve seen the team in the VIP area of nightclubs. There are women waiting for you every night. I don’t see any of you ever saying no.” She focused her gaze back on her pasta. “And that’s fine. It’s none of my business.”
I held my hands up in mock surrender. “Maybe a couple of guys on the team are like that. That’s not me.”
“You don’t have to lie to me. You’re an adult. Do what you want.”
A snap of irritation went through me. She’d better not think I was like Sean Wallace. The way he talked about women was sickening. My mum had raised me right. I was still just a kid from Leeds that had done well playing football. It mattered to me that you treated people well.
“I don’t want you to put me in the same boat as some of these guys. I’m nothing like them.”
She rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I shouldn’t have said anything. It doesn’t matter to me what Sean and the rest of you get up to.”
